Top and separable holding means therefor



Oct. 18, 1966 J, BLYHElD 3,279,119

TOP AND SEPARABLE HOLDING MEANS THEREFOR Filed March 13, 1964 FIG. 3

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V will EVERETT J. BLYHEID ATTORNEY INVENTOR.

United States Patent 3,279,119 Patented Oct. 18, 1966 ice This inventionrelates to toys, and more particularly to spinning tops.

A primary object of the present invention is the provision of a spinningtop of novel conformation, a string, and in combination therewith anaccessory in the form of a relatively rigid bar rectangular incross-section. This combination when used as set forth below or in anyequivalent manner, will enable the user to spin the top or spinner at avery high rate of rotation and with such power that it will continue tospin for a long time when compared with an ordinary spinning top.

Another object of the invention is the provision, in combination with aspinning toy and a string adapted to be wound thereon, of a stick ofrelatively rigid material having two opposed relatively wide sides andtwo opposed relatively narrow sides, with a hole extending through thestick near one end thereof between the said wide sides thereof.

The above as well as additional objects will become apparent in thefollowing description wherein reference numerals refer to like-numberedparts in the accompanying drawing. It is to be noted that the drawing isintended primarily for the purpose of illustration and that it istherefore neither desired nor intended to limit the inventionnecessarily to any or all of the exact details shown or described exceptinsofar as they may be deemed essential to the invention.

Referring briefly to the drawing,

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the combination device, in positionto be discharged to cause the spinner toy to spin.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the accessory stick per se.

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view, of the side shown in FIG. 1.

Referring in detail to the drawing, the numeral indicates a spinning toywhich, although in principle similar to a common spinning top, has adifierent conformation. As illustrated, the spinner consists of aglobular head 11 and an elongated cylindrical axial stem 12 extendingfrom the head 11. A length of cord or string 13 is provided, and inaddition thereto an accessory in the form of a stick 14 completes thecombination.

The stick 14 is of rectangular cross-section, and is defined by the twoopposed wider sides 15 and 16 and the two opposed narrower sides oredges 17 and 18. Near one end of the stick a circular hole 19 extendstherethrough at right angles to the sides 15 and 16.

The preferred manner of setting up the device for use is to pass thestring through the hole 19 from the side 15 to the side 16, and windingthe portion extending from the side 16 into one or more coils 20, ofwhich but one is shown, about the stem 12. This may be done with theshowing the reverse right hand while firmly holding the stick and stringwith the left hand. Upon completion of winding the string about thestem, the end of the string protruding through the side 16 is wound uponone or more fingers of the right hand, the stem meanwhile being held inthe left hand and urged against the stick, in the relative positionsshown in the drawing. The thumb of the right hand is then placed firmlyon the top of the globe 11. Then, in a bending position about a footabove the floor, and being careful to positionthe combinatin so that thestem 12 is perpendicu- I lar to the floor, the string is pulled hard bythe right hand through the hole 19, and at the same instant the thumb isreleased from the globe 11. This will cause the spinner to drop to thefloor while rotating at a very high speed, and upon meeting the floorthe spinner will continue to rotate for a relatively long time. The useof the accessory stick 14, in substantially the manner indicated in thedrawing, is the source of great augmentation of the rotational forceapplied to the spinner.

The spinner 10 including the globular head 11 and the stem 12 may bemade of any suitable or desired material and they may be finished in anycolor or combination of colors.

The coils 21 shown in FIG. 4 represent coils of the portion of thestring protruding from the side 16 of the stick, which are, in use,wound upon one or more fingers of the right hand.

The invention having thus been described, what is claimed and desired tobe secured by Letters Patent, is as ;follows:

In combination, a spinner including a substantially globular head and anelongated cylindrical stern extending axially from the head, a length ofstring, a stick rectangular in cross-section having two opposedrelatively wide sides and two opposed relatively narorw sides, the

stick having a hole near one end thereof extending through said widesides thereof, the string being adapted to be passed through said holethus positioning one end of the string on one wide side of the stick andthe other end thereof on the opposite wide side thereof, the portion ofthe string extending from said one wide side thereof being adapted to bewound about said stem and the wound stem being positioned adjacent saidhole and held in said position by one hand of the operator, theremainder of the string extending from the other wide side of the stickbeing adapted to be wound upon at least one finger of the other hand ofthe operator and with the thumb of said other hand pressed upon the topof said head, the spinner being adapted to be discharged upon the floorin upright position by simultaneously pulling said remainder of thestring and removing the thumb from said head while firmly holding thestick in said one hand.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1900 Berg 46-727/1916 Asakawa et a1 46-72 X

